THE EYES OF THE SKIN First published in 1996, The Eyes of the Skin has become a classic of architectural theory. It asks the far-reaching question why, when there are five senses, has one single sense sight become so predominant in architectural culture and design? With the ascendancy of the digital and the all-pervasive use of the image electronically, it is a subject that has become all the more pressing and topical since the first edition s publication in the mid-1990s. Juhani Pallasmaa argues that the suppression of the other four sensory realms has led to the overall impoverishment of our built environment, often diminishing the emphasis on the spatial experience of a building and architecture s ability to inspire, engage and be wholly life enhancing. For every student studying Pallasmaa s classic text for the first time, The Eyes of the Skin is a revelation. It compellingly provides a totally fresh insight into architectural culture. This third edition meets readers desire for a further understanding of the context of Pallasmaa s thinking by providing a new essay by architectural author and educator Peter MacKeith. This text combines both a biographical portrait of Pallasmaa and an outline of his architectural thinking, its origins and its relationship to the wider context of Nordic and European thought, past and present. The focus of the essay is on the fundamental humanity, insight and sensitivity of Pallasmaa s approach to architecture, bringing him closer to the reader. This is illustrated by Pallasmaa s sketches and photographs of his own work. The new edition also provides a foreword by the internationally renowned architect Steven Holl and a revised introduction by Pallasmaa himself.

THE EYES OF THE SKINFirst published in 1996, The Eyes of the Skin has become a classic of architectural theory. It asks the far-reaching question why, when there are five senses, has one single sense - sight - become so predominant in architectural culture and design? With the ascendancy of the digital and the all-pervasive use of the image electronically, it is a subject that has become all the more pressing and topical since the first edition's publication in the mid-1990s. Juhani Pallasmaa argues that the suppression of the other four sensory realms has led to the overall impoverishment of our built environment, often diminishing the emphasis on the spatial experience of a building and architecture's ability to inspire, engage and be wholly life enhancing.For every student studying Pallasmaa's classic text for the first time, The Eyes of the Skin is a revelation. It compellingly provides a totally fresh insight into architectural culture. This third edition meets readers' desire for a further understanding of the context of Pallasmaa's thinking by providing a new essay by architectural author and educator Peter MacKeith. This text combines both a biographical portrait of Pallasmaa and an outline of his architectural thinking, its origins and its relationship to the wider context of Nordic and European thought, past and present. The focus of the essay is on the fundamental humanity, insight and sensitivity of Pallasmaa's approach to architecture, bringing him closer to the reader. This is illustrated by Pallasmaa's sketches and photographs of his own work. The new edition also provides a foreword by the internationally renowned architect Steven Holl and a revised introduction by Pallasmaa himself.

ForewordThin Ice by Steven Holl 6IntroductionTouching the World by Juhani Pallasmaa 10Part OneVision and Knowledge 18Critics of Ocularcentrism 22The Narcissistic and Nihilistic Eye 24Oral versus Visual Space 25Retinal Architecture and the Loss of Plasticity 28An Architecture of Visual Images 33Materiality and Time 34The Rejection of Alberti's Window 37A New Vision and Sensory Balance 40Part TwoThe Body in the Centre 43Multi-Sensory Experience 44The Significance of the Shadow 50Acoustic Intimacy 53Silence, Time and Solitude 55Spaces of Scent 58The Shape of Touch 60The Taste of Stone 63Images of Muscle and Bone 64Images of Action 67Bodily Identification 69Mimesis of the Body 71Spaces of Memory and Imagination 72An Architecture of the Senses 75The Task of Architecture 76A Door Handle, A HandshakeAn introduction to Juhani Pallasmaa and his work by Peter MacKeith 78Notes 110Index 123Picture Credits 127